New Layoffs Announced by Caterpillar

Thursday morning arrived with layoff news from Caterpillar Incorporated. Newly announced layoffs of 10,000 or more coming by the end of 2018. Here's the latest.

Caterpillar, based in Peoria, Illinois, announced this week that the company plans to cut 4,000 to 5,000 salaried and management employees by the end of 2016, with most of the layoffs occurring by the end of this year. In addition, the company plans to layoff more than 10,000 people by 2018.

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According to NBC Chicago, Caterpillar Chairman and CEO Doug Oberhelman said “We recognize today’s news and actions taken in recent years are difficult for our employees, their families and the communities where we’re located. We have a talented and dedicated workforce, and we know this will be hard for them".

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The company stated that it needs to cut costs by $1.5 billion dollars annually and these new layoffs are a part of that restructuring and cost reduction.

Events like this are a sobering reminder that the economy is still a long ways from totally recovered.